We're the Misfits
by fai-dreams
Summary: Oneshots, drabbles, and mini arcs based upon the ever-growing popular crack shipping of the dragon boy Hiccup Horrendos Haddock III and the winter spirit Jackson Overland Frost. Includes many AUs as well as canon-crossover.
1. Colonists and Vikings

"Pa, who's that?"

A small, brown-haired little boy called out, his Irish-accented voice carrying eerily over the silenced village. The intruders stood frozen, every eye of every resident of the tiny community on them. They were large, much bigger men than the colonists had ever seen before. They were nothing like them, they knew not of who they were or where they had come from. They seemed very intimidating; carrying large swords and weird contraptions made of wood and metal. They wore horned hats upon their heads as well, adding to the frightening image they displayed.

And yet…

The child who'd spoken earlier suddenly rushed out from behind his mother who reached out timidly to hold him back. The boy tilted his head, and freed himself from his mother's protective grasp. He walked up to the man at the head of the newcomers, head still to one side as his arms hung loosely at his side. His eyes shifted down from the man's face to a figure, much smaller, who was hiding in the looming shadow the other created.

The boy smiled.

"My name's Jackson," the boy said, taking a step into the shadow and pulling the other figure out into the moonlight. It was a boy of the other's age, and just as if not smaller. His hair was brown, longer than the colonial's and redder in color. Freckles mottled his face, and his eyes flickered their vibrant green in the pale light. The boy who'd identified himself as Jackson smiled at the other child.

"Who are you?"

The boy cowered slightly, casting his eyes down in fear. Jackson smiled reassuringly again, crouching down a little to meet the other's eyes.

"Hey, it's okay. I told you my name, an' I just wanna know yours. What is it?"

Slowly, the boy raised his head and looked to the man behind him, bringing his hands together worriedly. The man nodded slightly, his eyes resting on the child before returning to the men standing perpendicular to them.

The boy looked to Jackson again before parting his lips just enough for him to stutter out,

"My…My name's Hiccup. I'm…I'm a Viking."

Jackson giggled softly. "Hiccup? That's a funny name, but I like it. No one else here is named Hiccup, but you're not from here so I guess that's normal. But…what's a Viking?"

A man in the crowd of colonists cleared his throat loudly before walking up to the two children and the man who stood behind them. The colonist's hair was the same shade of brown as the colonial child in front of him, and his eyes matched the bronze color as well.

"Jackson, that'll be enough. Go back to your mother."

The boy turned towards the man, his eyes wide and still full of curiosity. "But Pa, where did they-"

"Return to your mother and both of you go straight to the house. Now."

Jackson's shoulders dropped, and he cast his eyes down to the ground. "Yes, Pa." he mumbled, trudging his bare feet along the dirt path. Before he entered the crowd however, he looked back to Hiccup. He smiled again.

"I hope you can come over some time to play someday, Hiccup. Do Vikings like to play hide n' seek?"

* * *

So I decided to move my Hijack and HtTYD/RotG crossovers to their own story. I hope this will work out better for those who do not wish to see the shipping in my _Adventures of the Guardians _oneshot fiction.

Please review and list any possible AUs you'd like to see or prompts!


	2. Let Me Teach You

**Canon crossover AU**

* * *

"Hiccup, what are you doing?" I heard Jack ask as he peered over my shoulder. We were inside the Great Hall, alone for the most part. Or I hoped, I really didn't need other villagers to see me seemingly talking to myself. The winter spirit hadn't been in here when I entered, but I'd grown accustom to him randomly popping in whenever he wanted; with a hand on my shoulder as always, not that I minded at all. His touch wasn't as cold as it used to be.

"I'm reading," I replied, tilting my head down at the book on the table. "It's a very good book."

"Oh," Jack's voice dimmed, and he stepped back, only to jump over me and land effortlessly on his toes on the table. "Why don't you stop reading and we can go outside and have a snowball fight? Or build a snowman, or ice over a few walk ways to watch some good wipe outs? Or-"

"_Or _how about we stay in here and read?" I cut in, smirking a bit. "There's plenty of books in here I'm sure you'd like. If I keep hanging out with you out in the cold I'm going to _catch_ a cold."

Jack's face looked crestfallen, but he quickly covered it up as he jumped to the floor and leaned on his staff. I blinked; I'd never seen him make a face like that before.

"Aw, come on Dragon Boy, where's the fun in that?" He questioned, putting up what I easily recognized as a fake smirk.

"Everywhere. Don't you like to read?" I countered, my own smirk falling bit by bit. Something was up, I could just tell, and I wanted to get to the bottom of it.

Jack's face suddenly grew pale-well, paler, and a hint of pink rose in his cheeks. "Uh...um, nope, don't like to."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. Jack had always struck me as someone who'd enjoy a good book, especially during all those years of isolation. "Really? How come?"

Jack mumbled something under his breath, gluing his eyes to the ground as if he suddenly found it the most interesting thing in the room. I stood up, tilting my head at him. This was seriously something I'd never seen him do. Jack, the winter spirit, shies about something? And _blushing_? I expected the world to end at any moment.

"What was that?" I asked, taking a step towards him, "What'd you say?"

"I...IsaidIdon'tknowhowtoreadokaythat'swhyIdon'tli kereading." He stuttered, his voice faltering as he clutched his staff close to his chest, curling in on himself.

"Whoa, whoa, slow down there Frosty. Say that again, but slower, please."

Jack finally peeled his eyes up from the ground, and for a second I thought I saw his eyes heavy with tears, and it nearly sent me stumbling back. This was so weird. With a sigh, he opened his mouth to speak again,

"I...I said I don't know how to read. There, now you know." He grumbled before sitting on one of the benches in the Great Hall. He put his staff to the side to make room for his legs as he pulled them up, hugging them close to his chest. He sighed again, resting his forehead on his knees and successfully hiding his face from view. "I...never learned how...It's not like there was anyone to teach me."

"Hmm," I hummed, sitting next to him and holding the book I'd been reading in my hands. An idea was forming in my mind and a smile was spreading across my lips. I draped one arm around the spirit's shoulders, gently pulling him closer to me. "Well, now there is."

Jack raised his head and turned to look at me, eyes full of confusion. He stayed like that for a moment, mouth slightly parted before his whispered, "What?"

"I said well now there is." I chuckled, holding up the book so that he could see it. "How about I teach you? It's not that hard at all, really. It's just learning about the letters and then putting them into words, and then reading the words. Then sentences, then paragraphs..." I rambled, panning my arm with the book in front of us as I tried to explain the structures of reading.

His eyes lit up, blue eyes suddenly shining with the glow of the fires all around us. A hint of a smile pulled at the side of his lips, "You'd...you'd do that?"

"Of course!" I responded, continuing to smile at him. And I meant it, reading was something that everyone, spirit or not, should be able to enjoy. "What are good friends for?"

The smile finally won over the battle on his lips, and one spread across his face, lopsided just as always as Jack let out a little, soft laugh before running a hand through his hair. "Thanks," he whispered before clearing his throat and sitting up a bit straighter, shaking himself a bit. He turned to look at me, and something in me urged me to move forward, closer, just a little. So I did.

So did him. "Thanks Hic. That, that'd be great." He continued softly, slowly tilting his forehead down until it rested against mine. I felt my heartbeat picking up in my chest as well as a growing sense of warmth in my cheeks. The winter spirit continued to smile at me, the pink tint rising in his cheeks again. It was such a subtle change really, but with his pale complexion, it stood out amazingly...at least, this close up.

I mean...we were really close now. Our noses were touching just as our foreheads were.

This was...new.

We fell silent then, neither of us moving. I could feel his cool, soft breath against my lips. For moment I wondered if he could feel mine, no doubt much warmer than his own, and I then wondered if it felt nice, if he liked the warmth. I certainly liked the cold, I found myself realizing.

Actually, I didn't just like the cold.

I loved it.

"You're cold..." I heard myself mumble, causing Jack to laugh breathlessly and close his eyes for a moment. I found myself then unable to look away from him, not that I exactly wanted to.

"And you're warm," He mumbled back, opening his eyes halfway. I swallowed.

"I hope you don't mind that..."

He smiled again. "I don't, I like it actually."

"Oh, good..." I trailed off, mind pulling a blank.

"Do you?" He asked, voice still soft as his head tilted to the side ever so slowly.

I blinked, feeling a bit dazed before realizing he'd said something. "Do I what?"

"Mind me being cold."

"Oh, no. I like it." I answered, noticing how close our lips were now. "I...like it a lot, actually."

"That's good." Jack smiled again, "Then, you wouldn't mind too much if I..."

He trailed off, his gaze falling from my own to my lips. I felt as if my heart had skipped a beat, and let my gaze drop to try to match his, trying to not look at his lips as they seemed to draw closer to mine. I felt a hand slowly begin to run through my hair, and it was so _cool_ in contrast to the warmth in the air, something so different than anything else I'd ever experienced.

And I loved it.

I closed my eyes as something in my mind told me to close the gap, I don't know what but something just, clicked, and I pressed my lips to his. He shivered, his hand pausing briefly in my hair before it gently pulled me closer, his other hand coming up to do the same on the other side of my head. I wrapped my arms around his neck, leaning into him. He started to lean back, and somehow we wound up lying completely on the bench, miraculously balancing on the thin wood as I tried to hover over him while he pulled my upper body down.

For a moment we parted, both out of breath and eyes opening halfway to stare at each other in the dim light, trying to find something to say but no words came. The silence hung around us, but it wasn't awkward or weird. It was...comfortable. Nice.

Jack smiled then, seemingly reading my mind as he whispered, "This is nice..."

I nodded slightly, a small smile pulling at my lips as I started to lean back down to him. "Yeah, it is..."

A glint of something I could only describe as mischief sparked to life in his eyes. "So, I guess reading lessons will be later?"

I rolled my eyes, but let the smile pull through this time. "I guess so," I answered in a hush before a sudden force sent me falling over the side of the bench and under the table. I felt the wind be knocked out of me as my back hit the ground, but a hand rested underneath my head and kept it off the ground. Jack was above me, on his knees and one hand under the table now, the smile and mischief glint still present on his face and in his eyes. He leaned down and brought his face to his, quickly pressing his lips to mine before pulling away. He whispered,

"I'm fine with that..."

I reached up and wrapped an arm around his neck once more, feeling my cheeks fill with heat once more as I allowed myself to smirk.

"You know what?" I asked, whispering as I lowered my eyelids and pulled him farther down until he was lying completely on top of me. "I am too."


	3. Burns

He'd only wanted to help, honest.

He'd wanted to welcome them home, make sure that when they arrived that they could at least count on their home being a place of rest and relaxation.

He didn't mean to make a mess.

He'd just wanted to light the fire.

* * *

That's all he'd wanted to do. Get a fire going, tidy up their home, get everything neat and organized…Well, as organized and neat a winter spirit could make a pair of Vikings' home. Get the house warmed up, as it had definitely lost any heat it may have held at one time, especially with the special house sitter that resided within the wooden walls.

Hiccup and his father had left nearly two weeks ago now, on trade with colonies in the Americas. The auburn teen had insisted Jack come along, but the spirit had refused. He'd spent plenty of time back in the new land-well not that it was new to him. He had been created there, having risen from a pond he had later learned was nearby one of the new settlements; Burgess.

And for the first few years of his life, he stayed there. It was fun, of course, really he could make anything fun, but after a while a certain type of sadness had overcome him whenever he visited. He did not know why, he simply couldn't stay within its boundaries each winter any longer.

That's when he'd started to really travel the world, when he'd stopped just heading north when the hotter seasons came. He went everywhere his powers could allow him, even getting to cross the equator if he did it at the right time. The world was huge, and so many places caught his eyes.

But yet, one in particular stood out the most.

A small, separated isle called Berk. There really wasn't much to the island, most of it being covered in dense forests and hard earth that hardly supported the life it grew. The only sign of civilization was over on the peak, where buildings now stood and gained age. Apparently, only a few short years before Jack had discovered the island, the buildings would always be having to be rebuilt.

And that was, of course, because of dragon raids.

Jack at the time had no clue what dragons were, and therefore when he first made his way around Berk, was quite frightened and curious about the creatures. They breathed fire, something he wasn't too fond of, but no longer destroyed anything they pleased. And that was because they were now being trained.

And that was due to Hiccup, the very first person that Jack had ever met who could see him. It was he who, with the aid of the other teens in dragon training at the time, took on the Red Death and showed the Vikings of Berk that the dragons really could be on their side.

So Jack was rather fond of Hiccup. He liked to listen to the auburn teen tell tales of before the dragons were tame, of what it was like to live on Berk with such dangerous creatures. Of how Hiccup lost his mother, presumably to a dragon raid; Jack never really asked, and he would never now seeing as Hiccup was now the best friend to a dragon. His name was Toothless, and he was a night fury (apparently the only one they knew of!). Toothless had stayed behind, though a bit reluctantly and had mainly kept to pacing about the island in wait for Hiccup to come back.

So the house really was quite lifeless.

"Hmm…I think that's everything but the…" Jack trailed off, turning his gaze to the unlit fire pit that sat in the middle of the floor. He bit at his lower lip before shrugging and walking out of the home, leaning his staff on the side of the house before he went in search of some dry wood and a flame already lit. He didn't know how to start a fire, so he'd have to take some from another that someone else must have already made.

It didn't take long, to no surprise of his. It was early winter, and there were plenty of fires lit in the village with wood right beside the fire pits ready to be thrown in. He picked up a lighter weighted piece and carefully at arm's length dipped it into the flames and pulled it out.

Jack was slow in going back to the house, not wanting the flame to snuff out before he even got a chance to light the fire. He left his staff outside, fearful of any slip that could catch its dry wood on fire, and he really didn't want to know what it felt like for the wood to burn. He'd actually broken his staff before, and the pain he'd felt in result had been unbearable. He couldn't imagine what is felt like to be burned.

He'd always avoided fire, actually. Mainly because of the heat, as it made him uncomfortable as any type of strong heat had been proven to make him ill (in his first attempt to cross the equator, Jack had learned that the hard way). But another reason was because he simply did not know what could happen if he had contact with it. He knew it burned humans, animals…everything it touched was scorched in its clutches.

But he wasn't like everything else.

He was a spirit, most of the time it felt like he didn't exist. He could affect the environment around him, yes. He could change the temperature and make it snow. He could cover huge areas of land in solid ice, freezing lakes, ponds, even streams and rivers into unmoving and glittering natural ice sculptures.

But he couldn't touch anything living.

Humans went right through him, literally able to run through his body as if he simply was not there. And when he'd first learned that no one could hear, see, touch him, Jack had been terrified.

He'd slowly gotten used to of it, he sort of had to. He tried hundreds of different ways to get anyone to acknowledge his presence, but none had worked. He never gave up, he did keep coming up with new ways, but he always got the same result. His attempts almost turned into a game for him, always knowing that he'd lose, but he could at least have fun while he lost.

So, a small part of him had always secretly hoped that he could get some sort of touch from the flames. That fire too would give him some feeling of truly existing in a world where he was invisible to almost every eye. But the rest of him wanted to keep far, far away from any open fire. He knew it hurt humans when it burned; it could kill them. Heat could kill, just as cold could. And for some reason, he believed it to be worse when killed by fire rather than ice. At least with the cold everything turned numb before the end, though he wasn't sure how he knew that.

He paused in front of the fire pit, still holding the torch at arm's length. He'd already placed the fresh wood in it as he'd seen Hiccup and his father set it many times before, and Jack hoped it was really was just as simple as touching the flame to the wood.

He then lowered the torch, slowly until its end hit on the wood he'd stacked, and in mere moments the flame crawled over onto the new source of energy. Jack stared at it, fascinated in the way it moved. He always found it interesting to see how fire grew and shrank.

However, he was definitely not expecting it to suddenly flare, startling him with sudden heat and light that caused him to drop the torch to the floor, where it too caught on the wooden boards. Jack eyes widened as he jumped away from the flames, attention focused on it for merely a few seconds before a searing pain overcame his right arm.

He turned his gaze to it with a snap of his head, and his mouth fell open in a silent scream when he saw that the fabric of his right sleeve had caught on fire, and that his cloak was too beginning to catch. He then stood in shock, gaze flickering back and forth from the flame on his arm to the one beginning to consume the floor.

At a loss of what to do, something Jack would only later describe as an unknown instinct kicked in. He started to use his left hand to pat out the flames on his sleeve as he turned and ran out of the house. Ignoring the pain in his right arm then, he snatched his staff from where it rested against the house and swung it hard in front of him, stopping it as it pointed directly in the open door to Hiccup's home. A gust of wind answered, and for a moment the spirit's heart stuttered as the flames suddenly grew, only to die almost instantly when the snow, rain, and ice started pouring from the ceiling.

He paused, waiting for the black smoke that then wafted out of the house to clear before running inside. His eyes grew wide as he looked around; taking everything he did in, for now the entire room was covered in glittering snow and ice, not a drop of warmth left. Everything was soaked, the furniture, the decorations. Jack sank to his knees, coming to realize he probably just ruined any food that the Haddock's had stored, the paintings that hung, preserving memories of loved ones…

The spirit tilted his head back, closed his eyes and sighed before pushing himself up back onto his feet. He reached up to run his hand through his hair when he remembered the burn on his right arm, and gasped, opening his eyes in shock. He hissed in pain when he then pulled it close out of instinct. He felt tears already begin to build up on the brim of his eyes, and looked up to the ceiling and bit on his bottom lip.

"This...didn't go how I'd wanted...and this really hurts." He mumbled to himself, taking a long and deep breath before turning on his heels and a slowly making his way up the steps to Hiccup's bedroom.

Jack shuffled his feet along the wooden floor towards the bed, letting his eyes droop as his shoulders sagged. He'd messed up. Badly. He didn't have the energy to get the snow out of the house, he didn't know how to treat his burn.

He couldn't do anything right now.

The spirit sat upon the bed then, and swung his legs up before slowly laying down. He curled up, bringing his knees closer to his torso and tried to get underneath the blanket and covers.

Resting his head against Hiccup's pillow, Jack finally let out the long sigh he'd been holding in. The rush of air was shaky and uneven, and he quickly tried to calm his emotions before letting out another. He didn't know what to do now other than lay here and wait. Wait for the lecture and disappointment and anger that was sure to come with the Haddock's return.

The spirit closed his eyes and rolled onto his side, curling up further into a ball, keeping the injured arm close to his chest. He was so tired now, and for only a few brief moments, Jack fought to stay awake before his consciousness slipped away, and he fell asleep.

* * *

Needless to say, my father and I were definitely not expecting to come home to a house filled with snow and layered in ice.

It wasn't what we really felt like getting to deal with after the long trip on the sea, but honestly it was nice to have something to do right away. The boat ride had been dreadfully boring.

Toothless welcomed us back warmly, though he approached us from the Great Hall rather than our home. It wasn't too much of a surprise to me; he didn't like to stay there without us with him. But then again, Jack was staying there, and Toothless loved him. Why would he then-

Wait.

Where was Jack?

As my father and Gobber began shoveling the snow out of our home, I set outside to look for the missing winter spirit. He couldn't have gone far, he knew we'd be getting back today and he'd promised to be waiting for us. This wasn't like him-okay, maybe it was when he felt like pulling a prank. Maybe that's what all the snow and ice was doing inside

But if that was the case, Jack was definitely running out of good prank ideas. And he always stuck around to see the end result of one of them, but he was nowhere to be seen.

I sighed, having walked all around the main area of Berk and there wasn't a sign of him anywhere. He could be in the forest, but quite honestly I wasn't in the mood to go and track him down, and decided to walk back and worry about him later. I realized I was exhausted, and sleeping sounded like a much better idea than wandering out in the cold looking for Jack. Besides, he'd turn up again anyways.

When I returned my father and Gobber had gotten most of the snow out, and were scratching their heads at how all of the snow had gotten inside in the first place, but I could see a smile beneath their beards. I think they also guessed it must've been Jack. The entire village now knew him to be the prankster he truly was.

I let my mind wander back to him, beginning to worry that he wasn't here when he'd promised he'd be here. And Jack never broke his promises…Unless something got in the way of him keeping it.

I sighed to myself, I'm just getting myself worked up over nothing. He's probably just asleep in a tree somewhere; he has done that before. Heck he's probably out in that favorite tree of his-

As soon as I got to the top of the stairs I saw him, huddled in on himself as he slept on the edge of my bed. Now, normally I wouldn't really question this; it turns out spirits sleep anywhere and don't really care about a sleep schedule, and Jack was starting to sleep in my room a lot more as we worked on getting his memory back.

But as normal as the sight of him sleeping on my bed was, the sight of his scorched arm tucked into his chest was not.

"Jack!" I nearly shouted as I rushed over to him, nearly tripping over myself. He bolted to attention and had a very confused look about him.

"Hmm?" He mumbled, rubbing his eyes with his good arm before he blinked. "Hiccup! You're back-"

"Your arm!" I yelled over him and his eyes went wide, rushing to move his injury behind his back. He bit his lip and cast his eyes down, refusing to look at me.

"What...What about my arm?" He managed to mutter out, voice shaky and dry all of a sudden. "It's...It's just a little burn..."

"A little burn?" I continued to shout, unable to keep my voice down. I reached behind him and pulled his arm back in front of his body, only growing more concerned when the spirit grimaced and let out a noise of pain. "Jack, this is more than _"Just a little burn,"_ this is bad! How long have you had this?"

He shrugged, still refusing to look up from where he had glued his gaze to the floor. "Not long...just this morning, before you and your dad got back..." Jack whispered as I began to examine the burn. "I...I wanted to light a fire for you guys, when you got back..."

I paused before gently letting his arm drop, which Jack then quickly brought it close and cradled it to his chest. He...tried to make a fire? For us?

"Did you now..." I responded, my voice soft now as I began to collect medical supplies from around my room-hey, I hurt myself a lot and I needed to know how to take care of myself. "You know, you could've asked Astrid or Fishlegs or one of the others to help you, right?"

He shrugged again as I laid all of the supplies out on the bed. "I could've, yeah. But I didn't want to be a bother. I thought I'd be able to do it myself…"

"Want to be a bother?" I muttered before I paused in organizing the supplies on my bed and had to resist putting a hand to my forehead. "Jack, sometimes I swear your skull is as thick as stone, you know none of them wouldn't have minded! Okay maybe Snotlout but...But now as a result, you're seriously burned! Did you even think about what else could've happened to you? You're a _winter _spirit, fire can kill you just like it can kill me! Gods I wonder about you sometimes..."

I trailed off as I looked up and saw the slight glistening of tears that now resided in his eyes. And boom, there was the guilt. I paused and looked down for a moment before letting out a soft sigh as I picked up a pair of scissors.

"Jack..." I awkwardly tried again as I began to clip away the scorched fabric and skin, "I didn't mean to blow up like that...It's just, you scared me, when I couldn't find you. And then when I do I find out that you're seriously hurt? I just,"

I stopped, letting my chin fall to my chest while my hands continued to move over his wound. I sighed again, "I was just worried, and scared...I don't know what I would've done if I couldn't have found you, or if you'd been hurt even worse.

"Jack, I don't know what I'd do without you...I don't think I could handle loosing you..." _Not again_...

I looked up and found Jack glancing up at me, eyes still longer damp but also widened, and a small smile was pulling at his lips. I found myself start to smile back, and sat down on the bed in front of him.

We kept silent then as I finished attending his wound-when I poured water on it, he hissed, though then he laughed a bit, and so did I. And as I wrapped his arm in gauze, he looked over at me again.

"I'm starting to put a few of my memories together." He said softly. "We knew each other before, I know that for sure. We knew each other for a long time, didn't we?"

I nodded as I paused from wrapping a piece of the fabric around his arm, and looked up to meet his eyes. "Yeah, we did."

"We were more than friends though, weren't we?" He asked as his cheeks turned pink. "At least, we are now."

I felt my own cheeks grow hot. "Oh...Well, yeah...we are. More than friends."

Jack smiled again, and it nearly startled me, for it was a smile I hadn't seen him make since, since he was alive.

"What would you call us then?"

I shrugged, beginning to grin. "Eh, I'm not sure, but more than friends probably doesn't even begin to cover it." I cut of the last few strands of gauze and sat up straight. "There, all done. Now just don't catch yourself on fire again, please."

Jack laughed softly and nodded. "Not going to make any promises, but I'll try."

I laughed with him. "You're such an idiot, Jack."

"But I'm your idiot," He grinned, "And you're stuck with me now. Hope that's not a problem for you."

I smirked and got up onto my hands and knees, and leaned over towards him before pushing back on my knees and placing my hands on his shoulders. His grin fell for only a moment as I shoved him back on the bed, careful not to jostle his arm too much, and hovered over him before leaning down and placing a kiss on the tip of his nose.

"It's not a problem at all."

* * *

**GOD FINALLY IT'S DONE. I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS ONE FOR LIKE A MONTH AND A HALF BECAUSE I'D TYPED IT OUT AT 4AM ONE NIGHT AND GOOGLE CHROME JUST CRASHED ON ME and I'd lost all motivation for it. But I'd still wanted to write it since I loved the plot line and now it's done and I'm happy. uwu**

**I hope I'm getting better at these.**


	4. Dragon Ink

**Modern AU**

* * *

He liked coffee shops.

That's all Jack knew about his mystery date that his friend Anna had been ever so kind enough to set him up on.

She was always suggesting random dates to him or helping him figure out what to do for a date. He backed out of many of them, but Anna didn't seem to mind. She was one of the few people out of everyone he knew who fully supported him after what he'd announced at his sixteenth birthday dinner; his foster parents had actually gone as far to kick him out as soon as they'd gotten home, and she had been the first to volunteer to take him in. So many ways, she was like another sister to him, one he'd simply grown up without, and moving in with her hadn't taken a second thought.

But, supportive as Anna was, she still liked to tease the teen. Such as telling Jack absolutely nothing about the person he was about to meet other than the fact that they one, liked coffee shops, and two, the fact that they liked dragons. The first at least helped him plan out their meeting at one of the best coffee shops in town- a small, shop-corner hangout with dim lighting and great aromas of whatever season of flavors was in.

The thing about them liking dragons though, Jack had no clue why Anna had decided that was important enough to tell him.

Or so he thought.

The coffee shop was filled with clicking laptop keyboardss and sweet peppermint, the air holding the chill of mid-November. He always loved coming to this shop, as he was never disappointed with meeting a new friendly face over a delicious latte of whatever flavor was in that season.

Glancing around, the teen soon found himself to have no trouble picking out his date for the evening when he saw another teen that seemed just a bit older than himself. Everything about them seemed normal, with their auburn hair and bright green eyes; even the way they were sitting blended in with the people around them, making them almost invisible in the tranquil atmosphere, as if they were a shadow under the dim lights.

The only thing that gave his date away was the large, intricate dragon tattoos covering their arms and neck.

Anna hadn't told him a thing about what the person had looked like, but Jack had no doubt now that she hadn't needed to.

He didn't realize he was staring until the auburn looked up from-_what was that, a sketchbook?_-and flashed him a tentative smile, causing the other to subconsciously start counting the freckles that adorned his reddened cheeks.

_Anna did good with this one, oh man._ _I so owe her for this._

The auburn waved Jack over, the smile becoming more confident as the teen made his way over to the table at which he was sitting. Just the guy's smile made Jack's skin tingle with goose bumps, and it was then his nerves froze over. He could do this.

"Hey, name's Henrik." The auburn said, standing up to hold his hand out to Jack, who finally cracked a grin and took the hand in his own. "But you can cal me Hiccup.

"Jack." He responded as they both sat down, and he couldn't help but whistle then as he got a closer look at the tattoos running up Henrik's arms; they were _impressive,_ highly detailed with black and tinted with blues, greens... "Man, Anna wasn't lying when she said you liked dragons. Nice ink."

"Thanks," Henrik smirked, leaning on his elbows as he stared at Jack from across the table. "And Anna wasn't lying when she said you were a walking personification of winter. Is your hair dyed or are you just naturally as white as the snow?"

Oh yes, he definitely owed Anna big time.

* * *

**This was actually an assignment for my English class. I like to slip fandom stuff into my schoolwork whenever I can and see just how many of my classmates can catch it. I change Hiccup's name for the assignment, as that would've been too big of a giveaway, as did I did with Tooth. I like calling her Anna for modern aus. **


	5. Never Letting Go

Modern AU

* * *

Jack threw his phone against his bedroom wall, letting his anger and frustration build up more as he forced himself to stare at the new dent it left in the plaster. Blue paint chipped to the floor, snowflakes drifting down into the carpet below. He almost felt calm until he saw the shattered remains of his phone, and once more he struggled with his mind.

He _hated _this.

Jack pushed himself against the wall, his back pressed hard against the cool plaster until his legs collapsed from beneath him. He didn't care that he should've been getting ready, that he was going to be late. His teachers hated him anyways. So did most of the other students. Sure he had friends but, he didn't have classes with them. No, he wasn't up to their par. His intelligence was no match for theirs. He hated that too. Maybe they did as well; how good could it be if he was always asking for help with his school work? They must've thought he was only friends with them to get free answers.

That must be it, they must be pitying him. Poor Jack, little lonely Jack with the freak diseases and mental illnesses. Crazy Jack, good ole' class clown Frost.

He started pulling at his hair. He felt his chest tightening up. Was he breathing?

He couldn't do this anymore.

He didn't know what to do, he'd tried everything. He'd looked at every book and article that had been shoved in his face by counselors, he tried every alternative method to self-harm, he even tried medication that Principal North had somehow miraculously convinced his parents to get.

It was all for nothing.

Nothing _worked. _

In fact, he felt like it made everything worse.

He made everything worse. He could see it. He could see how he exhausted everyone around him, how whenever he entered the room conversation shifted, how the mood darkened, how no one seemed to want to leave him alone yet couldn't look him in the eye. It was like he was some sort of outsider, something unusual. Something weird. Something that they didn't want to deal with.

Fine.

He couldn't blame them.

He didn't want to deal with himself either.

And he decided then, that he wouldn't. That no one would ever have to deal with him ever again.

* * *

"Have you seen Jack?" Hiccup ran up to Astrid, Aster, and Tooth, out of breath and hair a mess. As soon as he'd heard that his boyfriend wasn't in first period, he'd gotten a sickening feeling in his stomach that something was wrong, and he had an idea that he hoped to the gods that just this once, he would be wrong.

"No, Hicc, sorry. Was he in first period?" Tooth asked, turning to face him.

"No! And he's not answering his phone!"

Astrid placed a hand on the auburn's shoulder, "You know that phone's die sometimes, right? Jack just might've forgotten to charge it last night."

Hiccup shook his head, "No, that's can't be it. He always has it charged, ever since the accident, he _always _has it charged. He _never_doesn't answer a call or text." _Especially if it's from me. _

"Well, have ya tried 'is parents?" Aster suggested as he glanced at the clock in the hall. "We need ta get ta class, Hiccup. I'm sure Frostbite's fine."

"Yeah, the bell's about to ring. Why don't you call him again during lunch?" Astrid added, already turning to walk to her class as the students around the group did the same. "You know that his alarm sometimes doesn't go off, or he might be sick."

Hiccup shook his head again, the feeling in his stomach only getting worse with each passing second. Couldn't they see that something was horribly wrong? Couldn't they feel it? "No, no that can't be it. He would still answer his phone; he's never missed a call."

"Well, there's nothing you can do for it right now. Just go to class and try again later, okay?" Tooth told him with a sad smile; maybe she could feel something was off too.

The auburn huffed turning away from his friends, frowning deeply. "See you guys after school."

Tooth reached out to him, but he was already jogging down the hall. She yelled, "Wait! Hiccup, where are you going!"

"To Jack's house!" He shouted back, not even glancing back at them. He didn't have a moment to waste, he could _feel _that something bad was happening. He didn't know how or why he felt this way but he couldn't shake it, and it was beginning to scare him.

"But what about-"

"I don't care! There is something wrong, and I'm not going to sit and do nothing about it if I can help it!"

* * *

This was it.

He'd waved his parents off, faked them out good with stomach cramps and a phony fever, and they'd gone to take Emma to school. He didn't have a lot of time before they'd come back to check on him one last time before heading off to work, but he didn't need much anyways. He'd been thinking about this for months, really, he'd just never set a date. He didn't like the idea of it, after all, how can one set a date for their own death?

He'd left a letter he'd written over time, the paper crumbled and torn and ink smudged, but it would do. He wasn't sure anyone would read it honestly. But he left it all the same, with a little note sealed in a letter addressed to his boyfriend, picked up his coat, and walked out the back door. He headed for the woods, the place he'd grown up in. Laughed in. Loved in. Everything in his life now had started underneath the trees.

It seemed fitting he'd end it all underneath them as well.

He was barely aware of his surroundings as he made his way down the path. Jack kept his mind blank, knowing if he thought about anything now he might stop himself. He didn't want to stop himself. This was the right thing to do. He had to do it. He wanted to do it. No one was there to stop it.

It was going to be simple really. Find the pond, walk to the edge, and jump. He couldn't swim, he never learned after his little incident as a child. He knew it'd scare him, the water. But he also knew he could fall backwards; he wouldn't have to see it. Sure, he could use a wide variety of other ways, quicker too. But he didn't want anything messy. He didn't want anyone to have to deal with that. He didn't want anyone to have to see that, what if it would be his sister who found him first? Or Hiccup?

Oh.

Hiccup.

He'd reached the clearing now. He was staring at the rocks when his name jumped into his mind, and he stopped. Hiccup. This was going to hurt him. A lot.

And Emma.

And his parents.

And everyone else around him.

"N-No it won't..." He almost didn't recognize his own voice as he pushed himself forward. He was going to do this. He'd come all this way, he'd left the letter, his parents might've already found it by now, there was no going back. This was going to be it.

He was climbing the rocks now. _Just think of all the pain you've caused them, this will be a relief! _Jack nodded, numb to the tears running down his face. This would be good, he was doing good ending their pain. _This won't end their pain, they've never been in pain because of you! This will hurt them, more than anything you have ever done. This is something that can't be undone! _

He was at the top now. His heart was beating rapidly against his rib cage. _THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP _in his ears, blood roaring against the ear drums. The forest was silent; there was no wind, no rustling, no birds. No sun, it was cloudy today. _Perhaps it is going to rain_.

He approached the edge, keeping his eyes straight forward until he turned around. His back was to the water, and he tilted his head up to the sky.

Little tears dropped to the stone, their splash louder than anything Jack had ever heard before as he let himself tilt back.

At least, until he heard his name screamed from the top of someone's lungs, and his mind roared to life just as his feet slipped off the edge.

"_Hiccup?"_

* * *

"JACK!" Hiccup screamed as his heart stopped. He watched, frozen on the bank of the pond as the figure of his boyfriend fell backwards off the edge of the dark rocks they had climbed all those years ago as kids. Memories flashed before his eyes as Jack hit the water with a sickening _splash_, every cherished memory he held disappearing into a void as his brain tried to lock every single painful one away. He felt a sob threaten to shake his body, snapping him back to reality. Adrenaline took over, his body moving on its own as he pulled his shirt from over his head, tossed his phone to the side, and ran into the chilly pond. He pushed against the resistance of the water, running all the way out until it was only his head above the crystal surface, pausing and taking a mouth full of air and diving under.

He propelled himself the best he could, eyes burning as he frantically looked for any sign of Jack in the darkness of the water. His lungs began screaming for air, his head growing fuzzy, but he pushed deeper and deeper, determined to find the white-haired teen or die with him.

And then he saw him.

Limp and lifeless, Hiccup saw Jack's form floating just feet below him, hauntingly still and his heart fluttered again in fear. He struck a hand in front of him, kicking wildly until he could wrap his hand around Jack's arm, and tugged hard as he flipped his body around before continuing to kick, this time headed for the surface. His chest felt ready to burst and his vision fade began to fade at the edge's, everything becoming blurry and distorted, and he felt his body slowing down. His kicks became less powerful, his grip on his boyfriend began to slip, and the sky still seemed so far away...

With a gasp, his head broke the surface and he sucked in air greedily, head swimming dangerously. For a moment, he forgot how he'd gotten in the water, and his grip on Jack's arm faltered again. The feel of the soaked cotton of Jack's sleeve shocked him back to attention, and he dove under to grip his boyfriend by the waist before returning to the surface with the white-haired teen limp in his arms. Hiccup swam towards the bank, his body shaking with effort now as his adrenaline rush began to fade, and he let out a sigh of relief as his feet finally collided with solid ground. Still dragging Jack beside him, he pushed himself out of the water until he was crawling along the soft dirt and mud. He released Jack gently, laying him on his side with an arm and leg outstretched, pushing down his own panic at his boyfriend's stilled chest and grabbed his phone, dialing 911 with a shaky hand. He pressed his free hand to Jack's wrist, counting to ten, looking for his pulse as he waited for the operator to pick up. He felt his heart leap into his throat when he found none just as the call clicked.

"_911, what is your emergency?_"

"I-I just pulled my boyfriend out of a pond," Hiccup's mouth felt dry, his voice trembling, "A-And he's unconscious."

"_Is he breathing?_"

"N-No, and h-he has no pulse." Hiccup choked out, beginning to feel panic take over.

"_Do you know CPR?_"

Hiccup nodded, forcing out a weak "Y-Yes" before leaning over Jack and rolling him onto his back. He hadn't practiced in months, having learned it in freshman year health class, but he remembered almost every step, and he thanked the gods dearly for it.

"_Start administrating CPR while I call an ambulance. What is your location?_"

"T-The Burgess Park Forest, j-just off Berk trail. T-The closest entrance is Wa-Warren's Den."

He could hear quick typing in the background of the call, pounding against his ears. "_An ambulance is on route. What is your name?" _

"H-Hiccup."

"_Hiccup, I will stay on the line as you try and revive him until the ambulance gets there. Okay?"_

"O-Okay." Was all he said in response before putting his phone down and moving to sit on his knees back Jack's head. Laying one hand atop another over his breastbone, Hiccup began giving chest compressions, counting every one aloud in a whisper.

"One, two, three..." _C-Come on Jack, don't you d-do this to me..._ "Ten, eleven, twelve..."

Hiccup held back tears as he reached thirty, beginning the cycle over without administrating two breaths; he was rusty, he might not tilt the head right, and chest compressions were more important.

Once he finished a fifth set of chest compressions, Hiccup stopped and leaned down until his ear was by Jack's mouth. He waited, listening and praying for any sign of life, and he nearly screamed when he felt the teen beneath him flinch before beginning to cough up water violently.

"Oh s-shit-!" He scrambled back, sending a spray of clumped dirt everywhere before rolling Jack onto his side, patting against his back as the water continued to flow out of his mouth.

_Oh thank the gods... _

Keeping his eyes on Jack, Hiccup reached back for the phone and held it to his ear, keeping a hand on Jack's back. "H-He's conscious now, coughing up water."

"_The ambulance is on its way." _The operator responded. "_You did very good Hiccup."_

Hiccup nodded absentmindedly, turning his attention back to Jack as the water finally stopped pouring out of him. The teen started to shake, curling up on himself, and Hiccup dropped the phone as he moved to pull Jack closer to him. He hugged him gently, setting him on his lap and buried his face in his hair as Jack hid his face in Hiccup's chest. He felt the white-haired teen's hand wrap themselves around his arms, clenching onto them weakly as quiet sobs began to fill the air.

"I-It's okay Jack," Hiccup whispered, thanking every god he knew as his tears finally began to spill over, "I've got you...I've got you..."

_And I'm never letting go again..._

* * *

well i can't believe i just wrote that. but i do have to admit it is a very good way to get out thoughts and emotions and stuff safely.

this probably needs warnings doesn't it.


	6. Never Letting Go pt 2

The weeks following Jack's suicide attempt had been anything but smooth sailing. He didn't talk, he didn't eat, he refused to drink; every nutrient his body desperately needed was being fed into him through an IV that pierced his pale arm. He thought it made him look even sicker than he was, and he liked to glare at it whenever the nurses came in to change it, never meeting their eye, or anyone else's. He hated it. With every ounce of his being, he hated that little translucent tube that was keeping him alive.

He hated his hospital room too. Its white walls and blinding lights that kept him awake at night. He hated his doctors, telling him everything that he already knew was wrong with him. He hated his medication, making him sleepy and wide awake at the same time. He hated his so called "therapist" who only managed to make him feel even worse about himself with every damn session he had to sit through.

The only thing Jack didn't hate was his visitors.

And there was one in particular, who after a month, finally convinced him to use his voice. Broken, raspy, and no more than a whisper, Jack's first sentence in five agonizingly long weeks was,

_"H-Hiccup...why did you stop me?"_

* * *

The only thing Hiccup looked forward today was what he was going to do after school.

Every day after class he would go to the hospital, leaving all of his work and chores undone, and debate on whether or not to go into Jack's room. Sometimes he did, sometimes he didn't. It hurt, it physically _hurt _when Jack refused to talk to him. He knew Jack wasn't talking to anyone, but still, he'd hoped that his boyfriend would be able to at least confide in him...

Turns out he was wrong.

And Hiccup was tired. No, he was exhausted, from the strain it was having on his mind. He was tired of Jack ignoring him and everybody around him. It had been four weeks, _four. _Four agonizingly long weeks filled with silence and frustration. He didn't know how much longer he could do this. Hiccup was usually a patient person, but Jack had pushed him to the edge, with what emotion the auburn still couldn't pick out, whether it was anger or frustration or fear or just plain _sadness._ Hiccup was ready to be done with it.

And it was finally the last day of school before winter break, and everybody around him was full of holiday cheer and excitement for their plans they'd made over break. The halls too were decorated for the season, covered in tinsel and holly and everything red and green. Paper snowflakes adorned the walls, making his heart ache, and some students even managed to hang mistletoe where the teachers wouldn't see it.

He had to resist the urge to glare at the couples who took advantage of that.

The day was an easy one, with none of the teachers even trying with his senior class, let alone anyone else in the school, to get them to do any work. They'd all taken their tests and exams the day before, and today truly was a day for celebration. Movies played, songs echoed through the halls, students even skipping their schedules altogether to hang out in groups across the school. Everyone seemed to be in the mood for the holidays.

Almost everyone. Hiccup refused to take part in any of the festivities he would normally love to do, just making it through each class with his earbuds in blasting his favorite playlist. He sat alone at lunch, barely eating anything his father had put in his lunch that morning. He hadn't had much of an appetite as of late.

Just as he clicked the next button on his phone, a tray slammed down in front of him, startling him and he nearly choked on the bit of apple he'd been chewing.

"Shit-!" He muttered, looking up at the perpetrator, finding Astrid standing in front of him. He swallowed the piece of apple suddenly, wincing at how hard it went down. "Uh-"

"Shut it." Astrid mumbled before pulling a chair from another table to sit next to him. She sat silent for a moment, staring at him with a gaze the auburn had to resist flinching under. He felt the urge to get up and simply walk away when the blond placed a hand on his own, and her eyes softened.

"We're worried about you Hiccup. Everyone, our friends, your dad, Jack's parents too. You're scaring us." She started quietly, looking down at their hands. "We know how much you care about Jack, how much you two care for each other but, closing everyone out yourself, well, it's just, it's not good, Hic."

She sighed, taking a moment before continuing. "We know you want Jack to open up to you. We all do, we all want him to just _say _something. But, we also want you to open up; you haven't talked about what happened at the pond, or...anything, since then, and...its scaring us, Hic. It's scaring _me._ It's not good to keep that kind of stuff bottled up, you know?"

Hiccup shrugged, focusing his gaze on the table. He started to pick at his apple, not finding anything to say.

"Hiccup, talk to me, or just, just look at me. Hiccup?" Astrid tried to catch his eye, lowering her head with his.

He didn't move.

"Hic?"

"I-I'm just tired, Astrid." He whispered, pushing his lunch away and crossing his arms in front of him. He set his head down, hiding his face from her view. "I'm...I'm really tired..."

Astrid sighed again, smiling sadly before an idea struck her, causing her to sit up straighter and her smile to become lighter. She lightly punched Hiccup on the shoulder, making him peek out at her with a raised eyebrow.

"What was that for?"

"Come on sad-sack," Astrid smirked, pulling him up by the arm. She began to shove him forward, away from the table and out the cafeteria. "You may not want to but I am going to make you participate in at least one of today's celebrations."

"A-Astrid, I-"

"Nope, you're doing this. Now come _on_, Snotlout is making a fool of himself trying to get girls under the mistletoe up by Mr. Sanderson's office, and you _know_ it's hilarious when they punch him!"

Hiccup had to admit, that by the end of the day, Astrid and his other friends had finally lightened his mood and had even gotten a smile and bits of laughter out of him.

And it felt good.

But as the day ended his smiles faded into nervous frowns and sighs, and his friends had agreed to leave him alone to think about how he was going to get Jack to talk today. Some had given suggestions, even promising to stop by as well before returning to their homes to pack for holiday trips. Many of his friends were traveling for the break, most of them actually. Astrid and her parents were going to visit relatives in Ireland; the twins were heading north with their family to a ski resort; Merida was heading home in Scotland to visit her family after living with Rapunzel all semester who was actually joining her with her own parents and Eugene…

It was really going to just be him and Jack over the long two weeks.

And he was hoping they wouldn't be full of silence.

He walked through the hospital doors confident, his backpack over his shoulder and full of sketch books and novels he was going to use in his plan. The nurses waved him hello just like every day, the doctors smiling at him sadly like always. Normally, they'd disgruntle him. Dampen his mood, but not today. Today he was determined. He was determined and dead set on getting his boyfriend to talk today. He was going to get Jack to talk, and make sure he didn't stay silent ever again.

Hiccup went over his plans Astrid and the other had helped him come up with, what he was going to say, everything they'd come up with, and mentally took account of the novels and sketches he'd brought, hoping to jog the white-haired teen to finally say something. So deep in thought, he was startled by the elevator dinging, letting him out on the fourth floor which was the children's floor. Walking down the hall, he couldn't help but smile at the laughs and gleeful shouts he could hear coming from other rooms. When he passed the playroom, his smile grew brighter, the memory of when he and Jack were kids popped up in his mind. That was so long ago now, and normally it would make him sad to think about, having been in the hospital at the time for the accident that had taken his mother's life and his left leg.

But it was also the day he had met Jack, and they had been best friends ever since.

Finally coming to a halt in front of Jack's closed door, Hiccup finally felt a bubble of unease and nerves rise up in his chest. Jack was stubborn, emotionally unstable, and no doubt sick of sitting in a white, loud hospital room; he wasn't going to talk until he was ready, or he'd try as hard as he could.

But Hiccup was stubborn too, and he opened the door with only a moment's hesitation, smiling bright and ready to finally hear his boyfriend's voice again, and he wasn't leaving until he got to hear just that.

"Hey Jack! Happy holidays, bud," he started, walking in and closing the door behind him. He tossed his bag onto one of the chairs pressed up against the wall, the hard cushion hardly muting the _thud _of the drop. "Today was the last day of school before break, so I won't be bringing you any homework for a while. That's definitely a plus, huh?"

Hiccup started going through his bag, unnerved by the silence he continued to get in response. He risked peeking back at Jack, finding him awake as he suspected, staring up at him in almost a state of surprise, and Hiccup had to resist the urge to laugh and cry at the expression on his face. It was the most emotion Jack had shown in all his time here, his eyebrows high on his forehead and eyes wide. He grinned, and pulled out one of the books he'd brought along with him.

"But I did bring you a few books, figured you'd finished the ones Tooth brought two weeks ago, if you, ya know, read them at all," he chuckled, "Can't imagine how much you would've enjoyed reading Dentist's Monthly and the many different myths about the tooth fairy. Here,"

Hiccup tossed the book onto his boyfriend's bed, smiling as Jack sat up just a bit more to look at the cover. It was a copy of one of Jack's favorites from when they were younger; Hiccup had remembered how much Jack had asked their parents to read almost every night they stayed at his house.

"It's _Where the Wild Things Are_, you know the one from when we were kids?" He said, moving to sit on the bed by Jack's feet. Jack reached forward to pick up the book slowly, holding it in his arms before looking up at him. "Figured you might like that, I have more too; oh, and I brought a couple of my sketch books, and I grabbed yours, hope you don't mind too much. Here, let me get them. I even brought those markers you like to steal from me from time to time-yes, I've noticed..."

Hiccup trailed off, his voice suddenly disappearing as his eyes reached the hand that had come to rest on his arm.

"Jack...?"

The white haired teen was sitting all the way up now, one hand on his boyfriend and another still cradling the book close. His head was down, eyes unreadable, as his lips parted, and Hiccup felt his heart skip a beat as Jack's voice reached his ears for the first time in weeks.

"H-Hiccup...why did you stop me?"

The words fell like glass against Hiccup's ears, shattering every thought that had been racing through his mind. He rounded on Jack, all cheerfulness and warmth lost in anger as he gripped the white-haired teen by the arms. He sat up on his knees and pulled Jack close, getting in his face as he struggled to keep from yelling.

"_Why did I stop you?_" He forced out between clenched teeth, his green eyes burning into Jack's as Hiccup glared at him. "_How can you even __**ask **__me that?!_"

"H-Hiccup-" Jack tried interrupting, his blue eyes blown wide and glossing over with tears as he cast them down to the sheets, avoiding even looking at the auburn now.

Hiccup was having none of it. One hand still firmly gripping Jack's right arm, Hiccup used the other to lift Jack's chin up until he could stare him in the eye again, and for a moment guilt rose in his chest at the glistening tears dancing on the edge of his boyfriend's eyelids. "N-No," He started again, his voice breaking before he got a chance to calm himself, "You asked, so now you listen, Jack. I stopped you that day because I wanted to. I _needed _to. I did not want you to die. No one, let me repeat that, _no one _wanted you to die. No one does now. I can hardly believe you actually thought we'd be okay with you dying. Heck, I'm not even sure you were completely okay with leaving us!"

He paused, sighing softly. "Jack, you're not alone. Even if you feel like you are, you're not. You will never be alone. You have me, and you have Emma, and your parents, an all of our friends. We're here for you, we'll _always _be there for you. We'll never leave you. You are wanted, and you're needed here. Emma needs you. Your parents need you. I need you. All of our friends need you. And you, you need to be there for yourself.

"Without you...If I hadn't gotten to the pond in time...Jack, I'm not sure what any of us would've done." Hiccup continued, "I don't think any of us could stand living without you in it. I...I can't imagine a world without you by my side anymore. That's, that's why I stopped you, Jack. And I will do it all again if I have to."

He finished, letting both of his hands drop away from Jack and fall into his lap where he started rubbing his fingers together nervously. All of his anger quickly dissolved into sadness and exhaustion, and he could feel his own eyes beginning to become heavy with tears that threatened to spill over any moment.

And with one look at Jack, they did.

Hiccup didn't bother trying to stop them, letting every cry escape his lips as he suddenly pulled the white-haired teen back into his arms and curled around him. He held onto him tight, burying his face in Jack's shoulder as his breath became hitched and strained between sobs he let escape between his lips.

"J-ack, I was so scared that morning..." He hiccuped, "Y-You weren't breathing, you weren't moving or doing _anything _and you looked _dead,_ a-and then when you finally woke up you d-idn't speak or talk to anyone for four weeks! _Four, _Jack! Do y-ou have any idea what that's done to us? What it's done to m-me? _Do you_?! Jack-!"

Hiccup stopped abruptly, every muscle going tense as he suddenly felt weak arms around him, tightening loosely around his body. He slowly became aware of the dampness on his shoulder, and the thin body shaking in his arms. And then he held his breath, not daring to move when Jack's head lifted away from him ever so slightly only to have his forehead fall back against his shoulder, and a whisper reaching his ears.

"O-Of course I do..." Jack's voice echoed around them, broken and shaking and heavy with so many emotions Hiccup couldn't place them all, "I-I was scared too...I-I'm so sorry, Hiccup..._I-I'm so s-orry_..."

Sniffling, the auburn released him to grab a tissue from his pocket and blew his own nose before pulling out another to offer to Jack. He took it gratefully before continuing,

"I was just, I didn't know what else to do, Hic. I felt alone, and I know I wasn't and that I had you guys but I couldn't get over the feeling a-and I just, kept thinking about how much of a burden I have been in you and my parents and everyone else a-and...II just, I just _lost it_..."

He swallowed thickly, trying desperately to calm his breathing which had begun to hitch in his chest rapidly. Hiccup pulled him close again, wrapping his arms around his back gently. Jack let out a shaky sigh before sinking into the embrace and relaxed as he went on,

"Honestly, I-I don't remember much of that day from when I threw my phone against the wall...I-It broke and then, everything gets fuzzy." He paused, wrapping his own arms around Hiccup. "W-Well, up, up until I was falling off the edge…that I remember clearly..."

His grip on his boyfriend tightened suddenly as he struggled to silence a sob that had risen in his throat. "Hiccup...I-I was so scared..._You were right!_" Jack cried, moving to bury his face again in Hiccup's shoulder. "I-I didn't want to die, I didn't! I was falling a-and I changed my mind...a-and then I hit the water, and everything went black...

"Hiccup, I am so sorry for what I did, to you, to everyone else…I was selfish, only thinking of me…" Jack's voice was fading, into a whispered, and he leaned forward to wrap his arms yet again around Hiccup's small frame. "I'm so sorry…"

He trailed off at a sigh that came from the auburn teen, who then pulled away from the other. Jack's face twisted in confusion, and a sudden fear of rejection burst through his chest, threatening to bring the tears back full force until Hiccup slowly took Jack's hands in his. He was silent, collecting his thoughts, and when he felt Jack's hands beginning to shake, he squeezed them gently and looked down at them.

"You don't need to apologize, Jack," He started softly, unable to raise his eyes to meet the blue ones staring at him in confusion, "If anyone really should be sorry, it's me. I shouldn't have blown up at you like that. I've just, been really, really stressed ever since it happened. Well, stressed doesn't even begin to cover it to be honest; emotional? Illogical? Those are better words I think."

He paused, swallowing dryly. "I was worried. Everyone was. And tired," he chuckled breathlessly, "_Really _tired. But the thing is, we were okay with it. We were okay with worrying and being tired because, well, we had hope that it wouldn't all be for nothing. And look, it wasn't!"

Hiccup smiled warmly, his chest shuddering as he held his voice steady. "You're talking to me, you're in recovery. It's a long road, sure. And we'd never, _ever _hoped to have to travel this way. But you know what?" He asked, releasing his hold on one of Jack's hand to lift the white-haired teen's chin until their gazes met. "We'd all do it again in a heartbeat if we had to.

"Everything is going to be okay, Jack. It'll take some time, I won't lie about that, and I'm sure as Hell it's not going to be easy, but in the end, it will turn out alright. And we'll, I'll, be with you every step of the way."

Hiccup gently pulled Jack into another embrace, the third one just in that evening, and held him close as the auburn gave in again to the tears. They rolled freely down his cheeks, Hiccup far beyond caring about them any longer. A muffled sound caught his attention, though he couldn't quite decipher what he'd heard.

"What was that?" He whispered, resting his chin down against Jack's shoulder, noticing how it was once against shaking softly.

A small, quiet whimper was heard next, followed quickly by a whisper from the white-haired teen in the auburn's arms,

"_Never let go_…"

Hiccup's grip tightened, and his eyes clenched shut as he nodded with a jerk of his head.

"I won't. I promise."

* * *

**ANGSTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT it's over! Jeez I'm glad because this was making me even sadder than normal.**

**There's a part 3. Whoops. It's almost done, and there might be a part 4?**


	7. Nightmares Suck

The muffled sound of sniffling and choked sobs is what Hiccup awoke to during in the middle of the night, the worst storm Berk had seen in a long time roaring against the window. Needless to say, it startled him, and the teen bolted up right in his bed. He peered about, blinking his eyes to adjust to the shadows that covered the room. It was then he saw the shaking form that was his roommate, curled up under his sheets.

"Jack?" He whispered out into the darkness, lifting himself out the mess of tangled sheets that covered his bed. He swung his legs over its sides, straining his ears to hear the sound escaping from his roommate. "Jack, you awake?"

When he got no response, Hiccup sighed and pushed himself up into his feet. He wobbled on his prosthetic, balancing dangerously on it as he navigated the war zone that was the floor of the two boys' dorm. He stumbled, and threw his arms out to catch himself against the side of Jack's bed, only causing his hands to become trapped in the mess of sheets that the white-haired teen had begun to thrash back and forth in.

"Jack!" Hiccup yelped, yanking his hands free as hack became more tangled in his sheets, his cries more desperate now, and the other finally saw that his eyes were clenched shut. He's still asleep…oh.

The auburn stood up and leaned over his roommate, not hesitating in reaching down to gently but firmly grip him by the shoulders. He held him still and began shaking him softly. He sighed as the cries quietly ceased, and Jack's resistance to him lessened as he finally stopped tossing and turning. He'd learned the best way to handle nightmares by now; this was the third one just this week.

"Jaaack…Come on, wake up. It's not real, you know that." Hiccup whispered, putting his head down closer to Jack's ear. "Wake up."

He kept this up for five minutes until the other teen's whines died away completely. Slowly, Hiccup's efforts were rewarded by the flutter of Jack's eyelids as he blinked into reality, and Hiccup frowned sadly at the sight of the redness that swam behind his blue irises.

"Hic…?" Jack mumbled, rubbing at his eyes as he tried to push himself up. Hiccup quickly released the teen below him, and sat down on the end of Jack's bed quietly while Jack fully processed what had just occurred. He sat up fully, but pressed himself back against his pillow, pushing it back against the wall and pulled his legs to his chest. He crossed his arms over his knees and rested his forehead against them, a shaky sigh escaped him.

"Another one, huh?" Jack scoffed, his voice laced with shame and embarrassment. "That's the what, third one this week?"

Hiccup's frown deepened, and he crawled over until he was able to sit next to the white-haired teen. He draped an arm around him, attempting to pull him close. Jack shook it off and curled in on himself closer, glaring at the sheets.

"This is stupid."

"It's not stupid. It's normal," Hiccup retorted, putting his arm back around his roommate. "It's nothing to be ashamed of Jack. It's natural to have nightmares about…it ."

"I hate it."

"That's natural too."

Jack sighed, and lifted his head only to lean it against his roommate's shoulder. He closed his eyes, sinking completely against Hiccup as exhaustion weighed down on his entire body. "I just want to sleep...but I don't want then coming back…

"Will you…stay…for the rest if the night?" Jack asked, hiding his face again.

Hiccup smiled, and nodded his head. "When have I ever said no to that? Move on over,"

Jack grinned weakly and obliged, and eventually both boys managed to slip under the covers (that they had to untangle first, which included a few curses and snorts). Jack hesitated before wrapping his arms around Hiccup, curling around him carefully and slowly, his own body shaking.

"Jack?" Hiccup craned his head back to look at him. "You okay?"

Jack nodded quickly, forcing his body to relax, and he pressed his forehead against the back of the auburn's head.

"G-G'night Hic…"

"Night, Jack."

* * *

Hijack Week, Day 4; Nightmares. Look who finally got to write something for my fave ship week. This is separate from the_ Never Letting Go_ Arc. What do you guys think happened to Jack? I'm curious to see your guys' guess, since, I really don't know myself. Ha. Inspire me to maybe expand here?


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